Hijacked
by BAJ
Summary: When a strange man makes his presance known by taking control of the Outlaw Star and Melfina he forces a conflict that will threaten thosands of lives. Gene and the gang will have to stop the madman's goal, but can they do it and still save Melfina?
1. grand theft outlaw

Hello everyone. This fic will take a few chapters to be finished so I   
hope I can talk some of you into giving it a try. I hope you enjoy it.  
Comments and questions are appreciated at all times via review. Thank   
you and enjoy. By the way I do not nor do I claim to own any of the   
following characters. This is a completely fictional story.  
  
-JAB MAN  
  
  
In had been a little over 3 months since that incident and the Galactic  
Layeline. Gene and the crew of the Outlaw Star had traveled far from   
Sentinel III and recently started up Starwind and Hawking enterprises   
on the planet known as Zeus IV. The planet was hot bed of business through  
out that section the galaxy. The chose it because Suzuka claimed to have  
worked there in the past, Gene figured that she would be of some help   
if they started up on that planet. Despite Gene's claim that this was the  
planet that would help them hit it big, business was rather light.   
Despite Gene's attempt to skip town on Fred Lowe, he was unable to escape  
the eye of the oddball arms dealer. He had been complaining as of late  
about his lack of money that Gene still owed him. Gene and Aisha were  
doing odd jobs through out the planet and both were bringing some money  
and Suzuka added her own money to the rent every month. Just enough for  
her room and board. Jim and Melfina were regulated to different positions.  
Jim was save money on maintenance by working on the Outlaw Star and Melfina  
was to keep the home front happy with food. They had been set up one month  
when Gene was picking up the phone as it wrung.  
  
"Hello Starwind and Hawking enterprises, if you can break it we can fix it."   
Said Gene  
  
"Yes, my name Albert Reynolds and I am going to need some armed security for   
a transport of some expensive historical artifacts. I woman named Suzuka   
suggested that I contact you." Said the voice at the other end of the line.  
  
Gene silently thanked Suzuka for the job and said, "Yes sir, you called the   
right man I would be happy to provide security. I am more then armed" Gene   
patted his caster gun.  
  
"Very well, you will be one of four guards that we will hire. It pays 500   
Wong an hour. We will need you for about 6 hours later this afternoon. Does   
that sound alright?" said Reynolds.  
  
"Sounds great," said Gene with the thought of 6000 Wong into his pocket "If   
I may suggest I have a Ctarl Ctarl friend who be a great addition to your   
team."  
  
"A Ctarl Ctarl huh, well sure you can bring him along. Those Ctarl Ctarl   
don't need to be armed" said Reynolds  
  
"Actually the Ctarl Ctarl in question is a she" said Gene "She is very   
reliable" he said lying through his teeth.   
  
"Very well, bring her to the Silgrian Ral temple downtown at two o'clock.   
I will be there at around that time." Said Reynolds  
  
"Yes sir, pleasure doing business with you." Gene said. After hanging up   
the phone Gene yelled up the stairs to where Aisha was eating breakfast. "I   
got us a job, we leave at two"  
  
"What's the job?" yelled back Aisha   
  
"Guard duty we leave at two" yelled Gene "The job is boring but the pay is   
good."  
  
"Fine, but for boring job like guard duty it better be!" said Aisha  
  
Later that day at about 2:30 Gene and Aisha were gathering their things and   
were preparing to leave. "Be sure to have a good meal for us Melfina we are   
going to work up an appetitive." Said Aisha  
  
"When don't you work up an appetite?" muttered Gene, Aisha responded with an   
angry glare.  
  
"You bet!" said Mel  
  
"I will be away for the day as well, I have some business to attend to" said   
Suzuka as she walked out the door.   
  
"I feel sorry for whoever "business" might be." Said Jim "Anyway I am heading   
to the ship I will be back in a little bit. I won't be gone long"  
  
"In that case can I come with you Jim?" said Mel "I need to get some stuff   
from the ship."  
  
"Sure" responded Jim, and with that the crew went their separate ways. Jim   
took his car witch forced Gene and Aisha to take a taxi.   
  
When Jim arrived at the Outlaw Star it was raining witch forced a mad dash   
from the car to the airlock tower. By the time Jim and Melfina had gotten   
into the ship they were drenched.   
  
"This stupid planet it rains almost every week here." Complained Jim.   
  
"Oh its not that bad." Said Mel "You just complain to much" Mel said as she   
rubbed the drenched head of the 11 year old.  
  
Jim just shook his head. Ever since that day at the Layline Mel had changed.   
She no longer moped around. She was not depressed like she was before. In   
fact no only was she now more up beat. She had a bit of an attitude to go   
with it. Jim attributed that to her spending more "quality time" with Gene.  
  
"Whatever" Jim said with smile "Get what you need and we will run it to the   
car when the rain lets up. I need to finish my work from yesterday and will   
be ready to roll."  
  
"Okay" responded Mel as she headed to the ship's galley.  
  
About 10 minutes later a voice startled Mel.  
  
"Who, who is there?" asked Mel quietly  
  
"I am sorry Melfina, I did not mean to alarm you" said Gilliam  
  
"Oh its you" said Mel "Don't worry about it, what's up?"   
  
"Jim has requested that you take a call. It was originally meant to got to   
Starwind and Hawking enterprises." Said the pink cylinder "But Jim says he   
is to tied up at the moment."  
  
"Oh, okay" Mel said, she then walked to the vid phone and picked it up.   
  
The face that appeared was that of a middle aged man. He wore think glasses   
and had a full beard that was beginning turning from jet black to gray.  
  
"Starwind and Hawking, how may I help you." said Mel as she silently cursed   
herself for sounding like a corny secretary.  
  
"Melfina, well that makes things simpler" said the relived man  
  
"I'm sorry have we met before?" said Mel  
  
"Yes, but I doubt you remember me, Melfina listen carefully. Layeline   
project command, it was you who broke my mason plate." Commanded the man.  
  
Mel gasped as she heard the words, because she remembered what they did.   
She then went into a zombie like sleep. No awake but able to realize what   
is going on around her to a certain extent.   
  
"Good now, Leyline project command, the wine will be served in crystal   
goblets." Said the man. Mel's eyes opened slightly. "Now grant me access   
to the ship. Disable the Gilliam system first."  
  
Mel then went to the nearest computer panel and shut down Gilliam, despite   
his protests. Jim was working in the lower part of the ship and quickly   
noticed that all the Gilliam "cans" and stopped working. She then granted   
access to the man who was in a car just outside the ship.  
  
The man quickly boarded the ship and ordered Melfina into her chamber. Mel   
did as she was told and entered her chamber aboard the bridge. The man then   
sat in the pilots seat and said "Lock out all controls of the ship outside   
this room and prepare for blastoff"  
  
  
  
next chapter coming soon 


	2. hang on!

Ralph was a fairly simple man. He had worked at the Delta City spaceport for   
almost 34 years. In a little over one year he would be retiring. Normal days  
consisted of organizing the huge amount of traffic coming in and going out of   
the spaceport. However, due to the rainstorm the idea of launching a craft   
would be utter madness. Ralph was sitting back and reading the paper as he   
intended to enjoy his day off. As he started an article on the local sports   
team he was curious to find that the engine beacon for dock 321-A was lighting   
up. He was not particularly alarmed by it but it did seem odd. He then put   
down his paper and began to type. As looked on he finally found the name of   
the ship at that dock. The Outlaw Star, he then remembered admitting the   
young boy and the woman on the deck because they need supplies. They did   
not mention anything about an engine test. He doubted it was worth his time   
but he decided to check it out anyway.  
  
"Hello, Outlaw Star, this is the control tower. I am reading a engine fire   
are you conducting an unscheduled test?" Ralph said into the squawk. He   
waited, and waited, and waited still with no answer.   
  
"Outlaw Star, do you read, this is tower." He repeated.  
  
"I'm sorry I intend to rename this ship now that it is mine again" came   
back a voice  
  
"What?" asked Ralph?  
  
"This ship is mine and I am taking it back. Also this ships name is not   
the Outlaw Star it is the Dragon." Said the voice  
  
"What the hell are you talking about?" asked a confused Ralph  
  
"Fine let me spell it out for you. I am taking this ship right now.   
I suggest you remove your connecting bridge if you don't want it destroyed"   
said the voice  
  
"You have got to be kidding me. You can't blast off in this weather, you'll   
be blown down by the winds or struck by lighting in the upper atmosphere."   
Said Ralph in disbelief  
  
"I know what this ship can do. Dragon cutting transmission" said the man  
  
Ralph quickly hit the red alert button that would send police, ambulance,   
and fire departments from around the city to the port even thought he   
knew they would never make it. The ship would crash long before they got   
here. He just hoped it didn't crash on the tower.  
  
Meanwhile, a very angry Aisha walked in the door of Starwind and Hawking   
enterprises with a matching Gene following her. Suzuka, who was sitting   
in the kitchen sipping tea, noticed the pair and said "Problems with the   
job?"  
  
"Yeah" yelled Aisha "We sat there for two hours and nobody showed. I think   
I caught a cold in that rain Gene"  
  
"Oh shut up!" yelled Gene "Its not my fault that guy never came for us. If   
I ever find that guy, I'll make sure that he doesn't forget me next time."   
He said shaking his fist for emphasis.  
  
Suzuka just shook her head and said "Well you might as well sit down and   
eat lunch."  
  
"Fine, what does Mel got cooking for us?" asked Gene  
  
"Nothing," said Suzuka "She has not come back yet, neither has Jim. So I   
will be making lunch today"  
  
"Alright" shrugged Aisha "Then what do you got cooking for us?"  
  
Suzuka let out a deep sigh and said "soup and rice"  
  
"That's it?" asked Aisha  
  
Back on the Outlaw Star Jim was at a loss for what the hell was going   
on. The communication system was down, the Gilliam cylinders had stopped  
functioning, the engines had begun to fire up, and the doors were all locked.   
It was safe to say Jim was in trouble.  
  
Jim quickly looked around the room for the pink Gilliam can that he had   
modified. He found it after a little looking and quickly used he tools to   
open the can up. When he had first gotten his hand on one of the Gilliam   
units he had found that their seemed to be section devoted to total pause   
in all systems. The command for this pause system was unknown. However Jim   
decided that he would have back up system in one unit. This unit would have   
the ability to override this the pause command if given a second command. He   
made this unit a bright pink so it could be easily spotted. Gene laughed at   
his color choice but, he knew one day it would come in handy. That day was   
today. However, Jim was a little angry that Gene was not here, so he could   
rub it in his face.  
  
"Gilliam, project command Genius James," said Jim  
  
The small pink can instantly jumped to life. "Hmm, odd it seams that this   
unit is the only thing on the entire ship currently under my command. The   
rest of the controls have been rerouted to the bridge by Melfina."  
  
"Why would she do that?" asked Jim  
  
"Jim please connect me to the nearest COM terminal, I may be able to   
reconnect to a few systems." Said Gilliam  
  
"Alright" said Jim as he pulled out a plug in from the back of the pink   
cylinder. He then connected to the nearest COM panel, even though the   
screen was blank.  
  
"Please wait, connecting" said Gilliam  
  
Jim waited for what seemed like eternity before Gilliam said "connection   
complete, I have access to a limited amount of systems so information is   
limited as well. There are two people on the bridge one is Melfina the   
other is not. Melfina is currently in her chamber and is not responding   
to any of my calls. The other person on board is not known to be a member   
of this crew."  
  
"Great, well can you tell why the engines have started up?" asked Jim  
  
"Yes, we are currently in countdown to launch." Said Gilliam  
  
"Oh, what the hell do you mean the ship is going to launch its storming   
out there we don't have a chance in hell!" yelled back Jim  
  
"Please Jim calm down. The Dragon is the greatest ship in the galaxy we   
will be able to make it" said Gilliam  
  
"Oh that makes me feel so much better, hey wait what did you call this   
ship?" said Jim  
  
"The Dragon" said Gilliam  
  
"Gilliam the ship's name is the Outlaw Star," said Jim  
  
"Odd, it seems that someone has changed this ships designation" said   
Gilliam  
  
"But only Gene can do that, he is the designated captain" said Jim  
  
"Actually Jim, according to the records the current captain is not Gene"   
said Gilliam  
  
"What!" said Jim  
  
"According to current data the captain of this ship is named Jonathon   
Reynolds," said Gilliam  
  
"Who the hell is Jonathan Reynolds?" said Jim  
  
On the Bridge the new captain had just finished the data transfer of the   
ships log. He now owned this ship once again.   
  
"Alright, only 30 seconds to blast off." said the man  
  
"Jim please strap in for blast off," said Gilliam  
  
Jim quickly strapped himself in for the ride and said "Oh this sucks!"  
  
Meanwhile back at Starwind and Hawking Enterprises Gene sat on the couch   
channel surfing while eating. Suzuka was there as well but she was too   
polite to complain about his inability find something to watch. Aisha was   
to busy eating to even care. As he looked through the dozens of channels   
and news flash caught his eye.  
  
"We are here at the Delta City space port where apparently a rouge ship   
is attempting to take off in the middle of the storm." Said a reporter   
"I am here with veteran space port manager Ralph Victors. Mr. Victors have   
you ever seen anything like this?"  
  
"No mam, I have not whoever this person is he is not the owner of the ship.   
He is mad and will most likely die if he attempts to get into orbit now."   
Said Ralph  
  
"You heard it here first folks and mad hijacker has stolen a ship and is   
attempting a blast off in severely dangerous conditions" said the reporter   
  
"Well that explains where Jim and Mel are, they are stuck in that traffic."   
Said Gene  
  
"There he goes!" yelled the Reporter as the camera zoomed in on the ship.   
  
Gene's jaw dropped to the floor when he saw the familiar red grappler ship.   
  
"This just in it has been confirmed that the ship is the Outlaw Star,   
belonging to a Gene Starwind and Jim Hawking. It is unknown at this time   
where these men are." Said the reporter as the camera watched the ship blast   
off.   
  
The Outlaw Star dashed through the sky blowing past the clouds and lightning   
like nothing anyone had ever seen before. The ship did moves that no one had   
ever thought possible and somehow, someway got to space.  
  
The reporter watched in awe as the ship went out of view and said "Mr.   
Victors, anything to say?"  
  
"Yes, Now I have seen it all," said Ralph in utter shock  
  
Gene Starwind sat in shock in realization that his most prized thing in   
the world was now a stolen ship. Aisha and Suzuka stood and as if to ask   
what Gene wanted to do. Gene stood up and said, "If Jim and Mel are on   
the ship they will need our help to get it back. We need to find a way up   
there."  
  
"Well how do you intend to do that, we only have one ship?" said Aisha in   
annoyance  
  
"Wait, I know someone who can help." Said Gene, he then ran to the vid   
phone and dialed the operator. "Hello operator I would like to place a   
collect call to a Mr. Fred Lowe."  
  
  
Next chapter coming soon. 


	3. the shit hits the fan

Gene sat nervously at the phone, waiting for Fred's smiling face to pop up on the screen. He really didn't like interacting with Fred that much. Its not that Fred was bad person or anything, he just had………..different tastes then Gene. The fact that Gene also owed him a small fortune did not help things either.  
  
Fred's face appeared on the screen and he instantly cheered up upon seeing Gene. "Gene! It's been so long, you never call, you never write, I worry about you!"  
  
"Uh, yeah. Nice to see you to Fred." Said Gene uneasily  
  
"So what do you need Gene?" said Fred  
  
Gene was a bit in shock as it was odd for Fred to be so straightforward "How did you know I needed something Fred"  
  
"Oh please Gene, every time you call me it's for some favor or another. But don't worry one day I will call those favors in for one big one from you!" said Fred, winking at the end.  
  
Gene nervously gulped and said, "Well Fred, someone has stolen the Outlaw Star and I need another ship to go after it"  
  
Fred looked flat out annoyed "You want a spaceship!" he said  
  
"Just to borrow, I'll bring it back honest," said Gene  
  
"Give me some time I'll see what I can find in the Delta City Port," sighed Fred  
  
"Thanks Fred." Said Gene and he hung up the phone  
  
"Now what?" asked Aisha  
  
"Now we wait," said Gene "and hope Fred finds something we can use"  
  
At that moment the phone wrung, Gene and the others looked at it in disbelief. "There is no way Lou could have found a ship already" said Suzuka  
  
Gene turned on the vid phone and a fuzzy picture of Jim appeared. "Guys can you hear me?" Jim said the message somewhat garbled by static.  
  
"Jim! What the hell is going on up there?" asked Aisha  
  
"I'm not sure, someone named Jonathan Reynolds has taken over the ship. Mel seems to be helping him but I don't know why. He has shut down all systems outside the bridge but I was able to get one Gilliam unit back online and we hacked are way into a communications satellite. That is how we can talk to you." Replied Jim  
  
"Jonathan Reynolds? Isn't that the same guy we were to meet at the museum today." Said Aisha  
  
"No his name was Albert Reynolds, but it could have been a fake name. I betting they are the same guy" said Gene  
  
"Are you sure?" said Suzuka  
  
"No, but it's the best I can come up with right now so bear with me" said Gene  
  
"Where are you now Jim?" said Suzuka  
  
"In orbit, I don't know what he is doing but if what Gilliam is saying is true he is installing something." Said Jim  
  
"What do you mean installing something?" said Gene  
  
"Gilliam can still monitor some ship functions, he said there is some new software being installed but we don't know what for. Also there is something in the cargo bay that was not there before. He put it there before we lifted off" said Jim  
  
"Let me guess, you don't know what that is either," said Gene  
  
"Yup, but what ever it is its big. Its taking most of the bay according to Gilliam" said Jim  
  
"Alright, Jim hang tight." Fred is currently getting us a ship we'll be there soon," said Gene  
  
"Someone is gonna beat you here" said Jim  
  
"Who?" asked Gene  
  
"I can see them through one of the view screens. It's a fleet of something coming from the planet," said Jim  
  
"Its gotta be the Zeus IV police. They are going after the ship," said Gene  
  
"Maybe they will save me!" said Jim "Guys! He is about to send a message to the cops listen in" Jim then patched his microphone in to the Outlaw Star's system"  
  
"This is the Dragon, state your business" said Reynolds  
  
"This is the Zeus IV pd you are under arrest for Grand Theft and trespassing, disarm your ship and prepare to be boarded," said a voice  
  
"I have only taken what is rightfully mine. If you attempt to board my ship you will be destroyed." Said Reynolds  
  
"You are now charged with pissing us off. Prepare to get your ass kicked!" yelled a cop  
  
The cop ships then dashed at the outlaw star preparing to strike.  
  
Reynolds then said "Very well you were warned" and he cut the transmission.  
  
A series of blast was then heard over Jim's microphone  
  
"Jim are you alright!" yelled Aisha  
  
After a few seconds of terrifying silence Jim spoke up and said, "I'm okay" the group then sighed with relief  
  
"What happened?" said Gene  
  
"The Outlaw Star was shot at and it was not damaged I can't explain it. It then fired its missiles at the cops and destroyed most of them. The others ran away." Said Jim  
  
"Well crap" said Gene "Alright Jim can you get to the cargo bay from where you are?" said Gene  
  
"Maybe I'm not sure," responded Jim "I'll give it a try"  
  
"You do that, try to find out what he loaded on board," said Gene  
  
"Alright, I'll contact you again later" said Jim  
  
"Okay but use the ear phone next time." Said Gene  
  
"Understood," said Jim "Good luck"  
  
"You too" said Aisha and Suzuka at the same time  
  
"Ditto" said Gene  
  
As Gene hung up the phone the television, witch he had forgotten to turn of, caught his ear.  
  
"We apologize for the lack of cameras we will attempt to get one on sight as soon as possible. But as I said earlier I myself saw the stolen vessel use some type of shielding device. Light shields have never been stretched as far as I saw it their folks, the police fleet never had a chance," said the reporter  
  
Meanwhile Reynolds looked at his handiwork as what remained floated through out space. (Soon) he thought (soon I will get back what is rightfully mine. I earned it and I'll be damned if I don't get it. That boy is locked away safe and sound and with Melfina at my command I'll have the prize they promised me all those years ago)  
  
At about that same time Jim found himself floating through the air ducts of the Outlaw Star. Since all of the doors had been locked he was forced to find alternate routes. When he and Gene had first "acquired" the Outlaw Star Jim made it his goal to know every nook and cranny of the ship by heart. In the time since he had pretty much succeeded. He had taken Gilliam along with him hoping he would come in useful. He was currently working his way to the main cargo hold. He would then be able to at least look at whatever this guy had thought the vents and report back to Gene via their ear communication system.  
  
Gene still sat impatiently at the phone waiting for Fred's call. He knew Fred would call back he always was hoping for a chance to get Gene more in debt with him and therefore inseparable. Gene shivered at that thought that entered his head. At that moment the phone wrung and before the second wring could occur Gene had picked up the phone.  
  
"Hello, Fred?" said Gene  
  
"Uh, no sir this Steven Hunter Channel 4 news. I would like to get your reaction to the recent theft of you spacecraft" said the man  
  
"Well gee let me think. I think………IT SUCKS, AND WHEN I GET A HOLD OF THE GUY WHO TOOK IT HE WILL WISH HE NEVER CAME NEAR MY SHIP!!!" he yelled at the reporter  
  
"What of the reports that two members of your crew have been taken hostage?" said the Reporter?  
  
Gene's only response was to slam the phone down in disgust. He then said "Damn Fred what is taking you so long?" Gene had been thinking about Mel and Jim ever since this mess began. He knew Mel would never turn against him, or the others so he new that she must have been under that Reynolds control somehow. He had seen it before with Gwen Kahn so he knew it was possible. He had to get up there come hell or high-water.  
  
Just then he felt a vibration on his ear, a sign that Jim had some new information but what was it? "Jim you alright?" he asked  
  
"Gene, I'm fine but we have got a bigger problem then we thought!" said Jim  
  
"What now?" sighed Gene  
  
"There is a missile in the cargo bay," said Jim frantically  
  
"So what the Outlaw Star is loaded with missiles?" said Gene  
  
"Yeah but this one say nuclear on the side!" screamed Jim  
  
Gene then got a confused look on his face and said, "What's a nuclear?"  
  
Next chapter coming soon  
  
Ctarl Angel: thanks for the heads up, I appreciate you catching that for me. 


	4. ransom note

Suzuka was a proud and strong woman. Grown men had wept at her feet, she had been begged by people for their lives several times and it had never her phased her. She had seen some of the most horrific things imaginable yet she was still human and had not turned into a pure killing machine. Despite what some would tell you she does not kill anyone for money, only those who she thought deserved it. Very little could ever strike fear into this woman's heart. But, what Gene had just said did. When Suzuka was a young girl she was required to look into her family's history as part of her education. After some research and plenty of digging she found a diary of one of her ancestors. As far as she could tell this man lived in the mid to late 1900's. His life was relatively uninteresting aside from one time in his life, which he described as the second Great War. Fighting as part of the Japanese army he was forced to leave his family and go off to fight. Near the end of the war a bomb was dropped on his home of Hiroshima. This bomb not only killed his family but also wiped his entire city off the face of the earth. Suzuka was so intrigued by this bomb that she did more research on it later in life. It turns out it was the first of only two nuclear bomb ever dropped in a war. They were banned in the mid 2000's and were thankfully never heard from again. She knew what a nuclear bomb could do and she for the first time in a long time was afraid.  
  
"Gene don't you know any history!" screamed Jim back through the communications link.  
  
"Uh…no should I" said a bewildered Gene  
  
"A nuclear bomb is a bomb capable of destroying entire cities in one shot. Its one of the worst inventions in mankind's history!" said Jim  
  
"What?" said Gene "Then why haven't I ever heard of one?"  
  
"Because they were banned in all warfare ages ago." Said Jim  
  
"Well, if they were banned how the hell did this guy get one?" asked Gene  
  
"Got me" said Jim "Maybe he built one"  
  
"What is he saying!" yelled Aisha  
  
"Gene pass out some communication units to everyone." Said Jim  
  
Gene did as he was told and grabbed two extra earring communication units from his cloak. He handed them to Aisha and Suzuka who quickly joined in.  
  
"What's going on Jim!" yelled Aisha  
  
"Suzuka you there too?" asked Jim  
  
"Yes, Jim what do you see up there?" Suzuka replied  
  
"There is a nuclear missile in the cargo bay of the Outlaw Star!" said Jim  
  
Suzuka's heart skipped a beat, as she feared how this day would end she only whispered two words quietly to herself. "Dear God."  
  
Aisha on the other hand could only respond with "Um Jimmy what is a nuclear missile?"  
  
Jim sighed and began his explanation once again.  
  
Meanwhile three battered and shaken police officers returned to the headquarters of the police department for debriefing. The commanding officer was very interested in seeing the recordings from the police fighters recording unit. The three surviving officers were 3 of a squad of 20. The three claimed that the stolen ship had some type of shielding device that could deflect bullets and missiles. It sounded like a light shield but a light shield could never be made that big.  
  
"Sgt Marks reporting sir" said the officer who came in.  
  
The commanding officer turned and asked, "Where are the other two?"  
  
"Receiving medical treatment sir. I am afraid that I am the only one who came out uninjured," said Marks  
  
"What the hell happened up their Marks?" responded the commanding officer  
  
"Sir, it was madness. I have a hard time grasping it. We attacked the ship with a normal pattern. We all launched missiles at it, and it didn't move an inch. We all thought the guy had a death wish or something. But then the missiles exploded on this blue surface just outside the ship. The damn thing never moved. Being completely still it was able to get a perfect lock on us, and well sir we never had a chance." Responded Marks  
  
"What about the recordings?" he asked  
  
"Right here sir" said Marks as he held up a small CD. He then put the CD into the nearest computer and a somewhat fuzzy recording showed just what Marks had said. The missiles could be seed blowing up on a faint blue oval just outside the ship.  
  
"That can't be what it looks like," said the commanding officer "There have been dozens of attempts to expand a light shield to that size it just won't work."  
  
"What are we going to do sir?" said Marks  
  
"I'm not sure. But, I want that guy to make the first move" said the commanding officer  
  
"The first move sir?" said Marks  
  
"He still has not left orbit Marks. If he wanted to steal the damn ship he would have ran long ago. He is still going to do something. Before we do anything I want to know what." Said the commanding officer  
  
Meanwhile aboard the Outlaw Star Reynolds sat at in the pilot's chair in front of Melfina who was holding a small recording device.  
  
"…so if you follow my instructions everything will be fine. Remember you have till midnight Zeus IV time. At the time I am making this that will be in 7 hours. Bye now"  
  
finished Reynolds  
  
Melfina then shut down the camera and waited for further instructions.  
  
"Good now put that in probe and prepare to launch it at that media ship" said Reynolds  
  
Melfina said nothing and turned and walked away. She walked thorough the ship and did as she was told. She then began to walk back to the bridge. But along the way a certain young boy who was hiding in an air duct saw her.  
  
"Mel?" said Jim "Mel is that you?"  
  
Melfina did nothing  
  
"Mel what's going on can you hear me?" yelled Jim  
  
Nothing, despite Jim's pleas she continue to remain in her zombie state and walked back to the bridge.  
  
"Guys are you there?" Jim said into his mike  
  
"Yeah we're here," said Gene who continued to wait by the phone  
  
"I just saw Mel" said Jim  
  
"You did!" said Aisha "Did she tell what the hell she was doing"  
  
"No, she didn't say anything. She seemed really out of it." Said Jim "I don't what was wrong it like she never even noticed me."  
  
"Just as I thought" said Gene "That guy must have known a code phrase that put her under his control. Just like Gwen Kahn did."  
  
"If that were true then we might be able to bring her out of his control with the other phrase he used" said Suzuka  
  
"Oh yeah,………………what was that again" said Gene  
  
"Dinner is signaled with a silver spoon," said Suzuka "Jim if you see Melfina again say that phrase and see what occurs."  
  
"Right." Said Jim, but at that moment Jim herd the machinery for the launch system fire up. "Oh my God, he is going to launch it!"  
  
"WHAT!" screamed Gene, Suzuka, and Aisha at the same moment.  
  
Jim could be heard taking a deep breath. "Its alright" Jim said, "It was just a probe"  
  
The trio sighed in relief and Gene said, "Don't scare us like that Jim. Alright you keep your eyes and ears open contact us when you find some new info."  
  
"Roger!" said Jim and he cut the line  
  
A few moments later the phone wrung and with in seconds Gene picked it up and said "Look if this is another reporter then…."  
  
"Well its good to hear from you too Gene" said Fred  
  
"Fred!" yelled Gene "Did you find something"  
  
"Yes, its not the best ship in the world but it will get you there. It's a cargo ship at the Delta space port I transmitting the access codes now." Said Fred  
  
"Delta space port, that place is crawling with cops and reporters. How do you expect me to get in there?" said Gene  
  
"I've taken care of it," said Fred "You'll be in disguise" I'm having one of my drivers pick you up. You'll be disguised as some of my employees." Said Fred  
  
"What is on board that ship?" asked Suzuka.  
  
"Rocket fuel" said Fred  
  
"Oh………..terrific" said Gene. He now wondered if he could bring back the ship in one piece  
  
"I'll be monitoring you from here, contact me when you get on board." Said Fred  
  
"The truck just pulled up. Fred I owe you one for this," said Gene  
  
"Oh please Gene, for this your going to owe me a lot more" Fred said with a wink. He then cut the transmission.  
  
Gene then wondered what exactly he would want now. A very creepy image appeared in his head and he shivered in terror.  
  
The trio loaded up into the truck and just as they did a transmission came over the truck's radio "This KWEL news we have just received a recording from the hijacker of the Outlaw Star and the murderer of several police officers."  
  
The recording then began to play. Attention, citizens of Zeus IV my name are Dr. Jonathan A. Reynolds. I am currently in control of the ship you call the Outlaw Star. This ship was created with the help of the space forces. They hired me for the project. This ship is of my design. However I was never paid for my services to due a mishap in the program. I am still owed 50 million Wong, and I expected to be paid. Therefore I have loaded a nuclear missile onboard this ship. A missile of my own design, it is a cluster bomb. Meaning that if it is dropped it will spread itself over a wide area. Now if you look at your history books you will understand what I mean. Now I am stilled owed that money for the design of this ship. If that money is deposited into my galaxy bank account by midnight Zeus IV time I will drop this bomb onto Delta City. There will be no more attacks on this vessel and all media ships are to leave the area. As you know attacking my ship would be pointless anyway with my new defense system…. so if you follow my instructions everything will be fine. Remember you have till midnight Zeus IV time. At the time I am making this that will be in 7 hours. Bye now" then the tape ended  
  
"Well this day just keeps getting better and better," said Aisha as she rode in the truck to the spaceport.  
  
Meanwhile back on the Outlaw Star Reynolds looked at the view screen and saw into the distance. (Well they have the message by now. So they are probably contacting space forces HQ right now.) Thought Reynolds (They will deny they ever heard of me of course. They will do whatever they can to distance themselves from me. If I told them that this ship was actually collaboration between space pirates and forces then things would be different. They would probably hunt me down and kill me. But now, they just want to pretend like I don't exist. Come to think of it Kahn never got paid either. If I could find him I would of asked for his help with this thing. Oh well, I'll get my money and go. But not before I give Space Forces something to remember me by. They will never forget me again. Because today I make history.)  
  
  
  
Next chapter coming soon---------------------------------------------------- ------------------------ 


	5. plan of attack

Gene had only been in some strange situations in his life, but this one was the most uncomfortable. He had just hitched a ride to the Delta city spaceport on the way there he had changed into a uniform provided by Fred. The uniform was skin tight, pink and yellow colored, with ribbons and frills all over it. Very similar to the one Jim was wearing after the Heiphong space race. He looked himself over in disgust. For some reason Fred had always wanted to see him in this get up. He sure hoped he enjoyed it because once they were in space. He was never going to wear it again.  
  
As Gene silently cursed Fred, a loud scream was heard from the back of the freight truck where Asiha and Suzuka were changing. "No way no how you put me down Aisha" yelled Suzuka  
  
"Oh calm down Suzu, you can change when we get to the ship. You never had a problem with disguises before." Said Aisha  
  
"This is not a disguise it's a clown's outfit!" screamed back Suzuka  
  
It took some dragging but Aisha finally got Suzuka out into the open with Gene and herself. Suzuka looked very angry and she said "If you say one word about this to anyone…"  
  
"Don't tell anyone about my attire and you got a deal" said Gene  
  
Meanwhile aboard the Outlaw Star Jim had finally returned to the engine room after crawling all over the ship. He could not find anything that would help him escape and he saw no sign of Melfina either. He flopped to the floor out of breath and said "Gilliam, now what do we do?"  
  
"Well" said the pink can "I think we should sit and wait for Gene"  
  
"Fine but when he gets here that Reynolds guy will blast him out the sky!" replied Jim  
  
"Ah…. I see, well then we will just have to make sure that doesn't happen," said Gilliam  
  
"How do you propose we do that?" said Jim sarcastically  
  
"Well, if we could regain control of Melfina she could stop the launch." Said Gilliam  
  
"Yeah but we need to get her back here. I can't get to the bridge." Said Jim  
  
"We need something that will get the intruders attention. Something he would send Melfina to do." Said Gilliam  
  
"Like what?" said Jim starting to get annoyed  
  
"I suggest you that you send me to get their attention," said Gilliam  
  
"What?!" said Jim  
  
"I will use my appendages to crawl out the air duct and then I will attack a communications unit as if it were you attempting to break in. Reynolds would think you escaped and send Melfina to investigate. You could then send the code phrase," said Gilliam  
  
"That's a good idea but why would he send Mel?" said Jim  
  
"You may not know this but I think that under her current state she can be ordered to do anything. Even kill the intruder if need be. In this case me," said Gilliam  
  
"KILL YOU!" said Jim  
  
"Yes, but do not worry if you say the code phrase she will simply return to normal," said Gilliam  
  
"Are you sure you want to do this" said Jim  
  
"I must Jim, it is my duty to protect myself. If Reynolds wins, my safety is in serious question as my crew." Said Gilliam  
  
"Alright but let me contact Gene first" said Jim "hello Gene"  
  
Gene was in the middle of getting past security when the message arrived. Thankfully no one heard it but him and the girls. After a few tense moments all three were on board Fred's ship.  
  
"Hello Jim, its us what's up" said Aisha  
  
"Well Gilliam and I have a plan to get Mel back." Said Jim  
  
"Lets here it," said Gene  
  
Jim then went about explaining the plan that he and Gilliam had come up with. After which Gene told him that it was worth a shot and that he should call him when he was about to set it into motion. The two agreed and cut the COM link.  
  
Gene then finally got a chance to look around ship. It was loaded with gigantic tanks. In the tanks was the fuel that powered the giant rockets that were on some older model space ships. He still didn't like the idea of flying the rust bucket full of rocket fuel but he did not have much of a choice.  
  
Gene decided that before he got down to business he had to get out of the moronic outfit he was wearing. He went in to the ship's restroom and quickly changed. However just as she he finished he heard a sound that made his skin crawl.  
  
"Oh Gene!" said Fred via the ships communication system "Are you there yet Gene?"  
  
Gene came out of the restroom witch Suzuka quickly went into, and said "yeah we made it Fred, how long will it take to get us airborne"  
  
"I ordered that ship be warmed for you. You can go in about 10 minutes," said Fred  
  
"Great" said Gene  
  
"Oh by the way, did you like the uniforms I provided?" said Fred with a sly tone  
  
"Very funny," said Gene  
  
"I can't wait for the pictures I had take of you three," said Fred  
  
"WHAT!!!!" yelled Suzuka as she barged through the bathroom door?  
  
"Just kidding" snickered Fred  
  
Meanwhile back in the Outlaw Star's cockpit, Reynolds sat in utter boredom. He still had five hours to wait before his deadline. He was beginning to think that he should have made it shorter. He then decided that he would go with the age-old time passer of television.  
  
"Melfina, put monitor to a local channels television frequency" said Reynolds  
  
Seconds later a large rectangle appeared on the screen. It showed some still pictures of the Outlaw Star and it showed a camera at Starwind and Hawking Enterprises.  
  
"As of right now we have been unable to reach Mr. Starwind for comments. It is currently the belief of Delta City Space port manager Ralph Victors there are currently two members of the crew on board. Possibly being used as hostages." Said a reporter's voice.  
  
The television then showed a picture of the Outlaw Star and Gene Starwind. Reynolds still hated that name. When he was in the Space Forces he was a top-level engineer. With the help of some pirate technology he designed the meanest and nastiest ship in history witch he name the Dragon, after the information the pirates found known as "way of the dragon, the path that she collects" However when Hilda stole the Outlaw Star and the pirates failed to get it back, the Space Forces scraped the whole plan and anyone who worked on it. He only later learned that his masterpiece was now in the hands of a two-bit Outlaw. It was painted a dark red and named something else but he could recognize his ship anywhere. He had been on Zeus IV for a couple months when he saw an ad for Starwind and Hawking Enterprises on the net. He then began to develop his plan, and now here he once again in command of his baby. As soon as he had his money he would head to the Space Forces and the pirates and sell it off to the highest bidder. He just figured he could get some cash out of Zeus IV why he was at it.  
  
"Today is going to be one hell of day." Said Reynolds  
  
Back on the planet Gene and the others were moments away from blast off. The weather had cleared and since they were on the other side of the planet many ships were blasting off to escape the nuke that Reynolds said he had. If the were on the other side of the planet they would be stuck.  
  
The blast of was a little bumpy but they made it none-the-less. Once in space they set a course. They knew they could not appear to Reynolds now; he was in too good a position. They had to hide behind the planet and wait for Jim to make his move. They just hoped it was a good one.  
  
Speaking of whom Jim was currently once again crawling through the air ducts of the Outlaw Star, however this time he was carrying a small pink can with him. They reached the opening to nearest communications port and Jim said "Are you sure this is going to work?"  
  
"No, but we really don't have much of a choice" said Gilliam  
  
"All right, but be careful," said Jim and he picked opened the vents. He then squeezed the small pink can though the slot and watched him fall to the floor with a bang.  
  
"Ouch" said Gilliam, he then rolled him self over to the nearest communications panel. Once there his cylinder body expanded and a few small wires came out of it. The wire then connected to the panel. In truth it was only a diversion. They wanted Reynolds to think they were attempting to contact the outside. They could only pry that he has Mel do the dirty work.  
  
"Gene the plan is underway," said Jim  
  
"Alright, we are in orbit on the other side of the planet," said Gene "stay in contact"  
  
Back in the cockpit a red light began to flash at the main control panel. Reynolds noticed and realized what it meant.  
  
"Well, well, it seems the boy does have some skills. He managed to escape and is now attempting to contact his friends. How cute." Chuckled Reynolds "I gave him a chance but I am afraid he now must die. Melfina, take care of it" he said holding out a gun from his jacket.  
  
Melfina came out of her capsule and took the gun. She then walked towards the back. When she reached Gilliam she aimed the gun right at him.  
  
"Mel, dinner is signaled with a silver spoon!" yelled Jim through the vent  
  
Nothing,  
  
"Oh crap, it didn't work!" yelled Jim  
  
Back on the freight ship Aisha and Gene glared at Suzuka.  
  
"Whoops" muttered Suzuka  
  
"WHOOPS!?" yelled Gene, Jim, and Aisha at once.  
  
"Its something like that, try another meal," said Suzuka  
  
Gilliam yelled in terror, as Mel was about to blow him to bits as Jim yelled, "Breakfast is signaled with a silver spoon"  
  
Mel froze blinked twice turned to Jim and said "Jim?" she then accidentally dropped the gun. It hit the ground and fired, putting a bullet mere centimeters above Gilliam's head. Gilliam sighed deeply and fell over with a thud. That was the first time Jim had ever seen a robot faint.  
  
"Gilliam!" yelled Mel  
  
Back in the cockpit Reynolds heard the gun fire and said with a chuckle "Sorry kid, but you had to go"  
  
"Gene it worked Mel is back!" said Jim as he smiled at Mel through the vents  
  
"Yes!" said Gene and the others  
  
"Jim, please tell me what the hell is going on," said Mel in annoyance  
  
"Sorry Mel, I'll explain everything," Jim said cheerfully  
  
Minutes later Jim finished the quick version of what had happened  
  
"So now what?" said Mel  
  
"First off, give me back Gilliam. After that take the gun back to Reynolds. We need to put up an act like your still under his control. That way you can mask Gene's arrival from him, as much as I hate to say it we need him and the others to get this ship back." Said Jim  
  
"You want me to act like a zombie again?" said Mel  
  
"Just for a while" said Jim  
  
"Alright, but how do I talk to you?" said Mel  
  
"I'll figure out something," said Jim  
  
"Alright" said Mel "bye Jim, and good luck"  
  
"Yeah, you too" said Jim  
  
"Oh and Jim, please tell Gene I love him" said Mel  
  
"Yesh, all right, all right," said Jim, he then took Gilliam from her and shuffled off to the engine room. "Gene"  
  
"Yeah I heard her," he said  
  
"Then why didn't you respond?" said Jim  
  
"Come on, I gotta tell her in person" said Gene  
  
Jim just rolled his eyes. 


	6. The Mel Files

Melfina slowly walked back to the cockpit hold the handgun that she had been given. She handed it back to Reynolds and got back into her tank. To any casual observer it would look like she was completely out of it. However, she was actually hard at work on attempting to find a way to communicate with Jim as he worked. While at the same time pulling of an acting job that could of gotten her into movies.  
  
(I can't believe I'm doing this) thought Mel (I'm a navigator not an actress, all right now pull yourself together you have a lot of work to do. First start hacking into the communications and sensor radar. That way Jim can get a hold of me and Gene can get here unnoticed. Wait a minute what's that?)  
  
Melfina's tank's primary function was to control the navigation and the autopilot functions of the ship. However in extreme circumstance Mel could control most of the ship via will alone. The tank was designed by Gwen Kahn to act in correlation to Melfina's brainwave patterns and her patterns alone. When in the tank she literally becomes part of the ship and can control almost everything. The down side however is that it extremely exhausting and long-term management of the entire ship would not be possible for Mel.  
  
Melfina ran across two new programs that she never remembered seeing before. The first was entitled light shield upgrade. Upon inspection she learned that it was an extremely powerful light shield. Nothing could penetrate it. The second was a targeting system for the Nuke that Jim and informed her about. (Well that light shield program is going to be difficult but the targeting system I could delete with a thought, but if I do that dipswitch over there my notice. I better hold of on that)  
  
Meanwhile Jim found himself once again in the engine room. He knew he needed to speak with Mel and find out what she new. However he was not worried Mel would think of something, she usually did. Ever since the layline Mel had changed. It was not a drastic change she was still timid at times and still a sweet and very cute girl. Yet, she seemed to have lost her depressed personality and had it replaced with a bit a spark. Her new attitude appeared one time at a spaceport when Gene and Jim were caught attempting a meal for Mel's birthday party. As expected the kitchen almost went up in flames and both came out of it looking like a couple of batter and beaten fire fighters. When Mel saw them she laughed like none of them had ever heard. She then said, "You two look like hell!" Seeing Mel laugh her self silly was one thing but having her curse slightly almost sent them into shock. Jim would never forget that day and he was sure Gene wouldn't either.  
  
"Jim are you there" Melfina's voice said  
  
"Mel is that you?" said Jim  
  
"Yes, Jim I found a way to talk to you" said Mel  
  
"How?" said Jim seeming to answer to thin air.  
  
"Well, I kind of found your brainwave pattern and used it to insert my thoughts in to yours," said Mel  
  
"You did what now?" said Jim  
  
"I hacked into your brain," said Mel  
  
"YOU DID WHAT!" said Jim  
  
"Its only temporary, the Outlaw Star has the ability to read brainwaves I just modified it a little" said Mel apologetically  
  
"How can you do this?" said Jim in wonder "I thought you were just a navigator"  
  
"I am, but in times of crisis I can take control of the ship." Said Melfina  
  
"Your just full of surprises aren't you Mel," said Jim  
  
"Jim who are you talking to?" said Gilliam as he awoke from his fainting episode  
  
"Mel, she seems to have found a way to talk inside my head or something," said Jim  
  
"Oh okay" said Gilliam with a confused tone.  
  
Back in the cockpit Reynolds seemed oblivious to Mel's actions. Primarily because she was not moving, all her actions were done via her own brain. Anyway he seemed to busy watching all the news broadcasts.  
  
Gene, Asiha, and Suzuka were now in orbit and waiting on the blind side of the Zeus IV. If they came out they would quickly be seen via sensors. However if the sensors were disabled they might be able to distract him long enough to get in. Then came the problem of getting past the shields.  
  
"Gene, how do you intend to penetrate the Outlaw Star with that defense system?" asked Fred via the communications link.  
  
"Well, to tell you the truth I really don't know yet. Getting past a light shield is difficult, getting past one of that size in going to be almost impossible. I am hoping that Mel and Jim can think up something." Said Gene  
  
Back aboard the Outlaw Star Jim and Mel were discussing just that  
  
"I think were screwed," said Jim  
  
"Jim, we have be optimistic," said Mel  
  
"Optimistic huh" said Jim "Well I am open to suggestions."  
  
"I can't shut down the light shield or he will figure out that I am awake. We have to make what ever we do look like a malfunction of some sort. But what kind of malfunction would bring down the whole shield?" said Mel  
  
Suddenly Jim's mind sparked to life he thought back to the time that Gene had fought Suzuka for the sake of Fred's life. Gene had asked him to cause a malfunction that created a centralized and extremely strong light shield in his gloves. It worked rather well and was partially responsible for allowing Gene to defeat the assassin that would later become their shipmate. Jim wondered if the same technique could work here.  
  
"Isn't that a little risky" said Mel  
  
"What?" asked a confused Jim  
  
"The centralized shield idea" stated Mel  
  
"Oh, how did you…." Said Jim  
  
"I can read your thoughts remember," said Mel  
  
Jim suddenly got very afraid of what other thought she could read he wondered just how much she could see through his mind's eye.  
  
"I can only see what you are thinking about at the moment. I can not dive into the past unless you bring it up," said Mel responding to his thoughts  
  
Jim then promised himself not to think about the picture he had of Aisha in the bikini in his dresser.  
  
Mel giggled mentally and Jim realized his mistake with extreme embarrassment.  
  
"Don't worry about it, I won't tell a sole." Giggled Mel  
  
"Uh, thanks…now back to the shield. I think that it would work. When he sees that giant concentrated shield in front of the ship he will shut down the system allowing Gene and the others to get it. As long as you can shut down the sensor system." Said Mel  
  
"No problem" said Mel "But how will you get there"?  
  
"Oh, didn't think about that." said Jim looking at the locked door  
  
"I can open a couple doors but to many and he might spot you." Said Mel  
  
"Can you get me to the my work shop. If I can get there I can get the tools I need to alter the shields. The shields seem be fueled off the engines so I can already do it here. I just need some special tools." Said Jim  
  
"I think so," said Mel "Just follow my instructions"  
  
A few minutes later Jim had retrieved his tools and was hard at work. Mel sat patiently and waited for Jim's response  
  
"Jim, you there said" Gene via their link  
  
"Yeah, I'm here." Said Jim  
  
"We have about an hour left. What the hell are you two doing!" said Gene  
  
"Relax Gene I'll be done soon. I am working on a plan to make Reynolds shut the shield system. Mel will disable the sensors. You just need to do some slick piloting to make it in here in that short time. You have to make it on board and fast. You'll have to transfer over in suits. He will blast you other wise. Said Jim  
  
"Gee, and I thought this was going to be hard" said Aisha sarcastically.  
  
"Oh and you have to have the ship back in your control with about 15 minutes. If you don't the planet's defense force might decide to take advantage of the situation." Said Jim  
  
There was a collective groan from the rest of the crew  
  
"Hey you knew that this was not going to be easy," complained Jim  
  
"Yeah, we know," said Gene "Now you two get ready. In 15 minutes we take that S.O.B. down."  
  
Fourteen minutes later Reynolds was in the cockpit monitoring the activity below. The Zeus IV government seemed to be in a state of chaos. Then again they did have a nuke pointed at them so they did have some cause to be disorganized.  
  
"This is even more fun then I thought it would be" Reynolds said to himself  
  
At that moment he heard an alarm go off. The alarm was signaling that there was something very wrong with the new shielding system he had developed. Before he could react the shields seemed to explode and formed what appeared to be a gigantic blue sphere at the nose of the ship. Reynolds' eyes almost bugged out of his head when he saw what was happening, he had never seen anything like it. Reynolds quickly began checking every system to see if he could spot the problem. However, before he got to far he felt the ship begin to shake. The force of the shield sphere was beginning to damage the ship. He had no choice but shut down the system.  
  
"SHIT!" he yelled as he shut down the system. He knew that Zeus IV satellites were monitoring him. They probably debating on what the hell just happened. Soon they would scramble a fleet of fighters to go after him. He had to have the shields up by that time.  
  
Reynolds quickly ran to the back to fix what ever the problem was. As soon as he was away Melfina smiled and shut down the sensor system. She then gave to go ahead to Jim who relayed it to Gene. Jim then ran as fast as he could back to the engine room. Seconds later Reynolds arrived where Gene just was.  
  
Reynolds looked at the system and realized the problem it would take a few minutes to fix but he could not figure out how it occurred. Then he noticed a toolbox at his feet. He picked it up and read the name Jim Hawking.  
  
Reynolds anger then went right off the charts. He screamed "God damit!" and threw the toolbox against the wall. He then pulled a gun from his jacket pocket and said "First things first, never send a bio-android to do a mans job!"  
  
Meanwhile Suzuka, Aisha and Gene were exiting the ship in jet pack suits. They were all connected via a steel wire. After traveling a little over half way to the Outlaw Star Suzuka heard a sound. It was a very quiet voice.  
  
"Dad, no please no," whimper Gene  
  
"Gene?" asked a confused Aisha  
  
"I…I…can't do it, I can't do this" said Gene sounding terrified  
  
Suzuka then realized what was wrong.  
  
"Dad, no" said Gene as he shivered in terror in dark, cold, and empty space. 


	7. Crunch Time

Reynolds was on the brink of ripping that boy limb from limb. His plan was going so well. Then that kid had to get in the way, he had no doubt that he had contacted Starwind by now and that this was some attempt to get him and his crew on board. But as long as he had Melfina and the Outlaw Star at his will and command there was nothing they could do. The original plan called Jim to contact Starwind and bring him in. He was probably already on the dark side of the planet just out of sensor range. He wanted to face Starwind face to face. He wanted to meet the man that had turned his master peace into a two-bit Outlaw cruiser. He then wanted to blow him out of the star with his master peace. But this sabotage was a bit much. He did not expect it. He was going to let the boy go, but now he would just have to end it himself.  
  
"Alright calm down, the boy will be taken care of in due time but first we need to fix the shields and let the planet defense forces know that I am back in control" Reynolds said to himself. He then quickly went to work on the sabotage.  
  
Meanwhile in the middle of space heading towards the Outlaw Star Suzuka and Aisha found themselves dragging Gene Starwind to the Outlaw Star as he was frozen in terror.  
  
Ashia seemed at a loss for what was Gene's problem. She had been in space dozens of times none of witch and caused her any great fear. Suzuka however knew exactly what was going on. Not long ago she had taken it upon herself to learn everything she could about her new "family". She had learned through old news files that Gene's father was killed in pirate raid with Gene aboard. Gene was able to escape the dying ship in an escape pod. He spent almost 4 hours in zero gravity inside the pod as his orbit decayed before he reentered the plants atmosphere. He was only 13 when it happened. For four hours Gene sat alone in the dark the only source of light being the stars and his father's ship as it exploded. He had 4 hours to contemplate that moment.  
  
Suzuka understood why he might have some after affects of that situation. She to had a similar situation. Unknown to the others she had a huge fear of fires. When she was 16 a fellow assassin murdered her family by burning them to death. Suzuka only found their charred remains. Since that day fire has always had some strange affects on her.  
  
The trio had finally reached the Outlaw Star and thankfully it seemed that no one had noticed. Aisha opened the external hatch and all three made their way inside. With in seconds gravity was restored and the hatch was pressurized. Gene quickly took of his helmet and proceeded to barf all over the hatch. After he had expelled all that he could he stood up wobbling as he did so.  
  
"Better?" said Suzuka  
  
"Yeah" sighed Gene  
  
"You ready to do this" said Aisha  
  
"Yeah you two go find Jim, by now Reynolds is probably on to what he is doing," said Gene "He will probably want to kill him"  
  
"We will stop him," said Suzuka  
  
"Come on Suzu lets go save Jimmy!" said Aisha happily  
  
Suzuka rolled her eyes and said "why me"  
  
Gene attempted to steady himself against a near by wall. H promised himself that he would not freak out when he went through space to the Outlaw Star. He was confinement that he could over come his fears and get the job done. He was wrong.  
  
"Damit!" cursed Gene to no one  
  
Gene then shook his head and quickly got out of his suit. He then pulled out a small gun from his side (He didn't want to fire the Caster inside the Outlaw Star) and began his way toward the bridge.  
  
"Oh well…now to the fun part," said Gene  
  
Back in the shield unit Reynolds had finished the repairs all that was needed was to reset the system. With a flick of a switch he did just that. The new shield generator hummed to life and seconds later the Outlaw Star was once again an impenetrable fortress.  
  
"Now for the kid" said Reynolds as he got to his feet.  
  
  
  
Jim heard the shield generator fire up and he knew he had to hurry, he knew Reynolds would want his head now. He had to find some place to hide. But before he did he had to learn weather there was a point to doing so.  
  
"Gene are you there, did you guys make it" whispered Jim into his communication device.  
  
"Jim! Yeah we are all here I am headed toward Mel. Suzuka and Aisha are looking for you. Hey you two can you here us?" asked Gene  
  
"Loud and clear! Jim where are you!" asked Aisha  
  
"I am in Cargo bay 3. The shields are back up which means that Reynolds is probably done and looking for me." Said Jim  
  
"We are on our way," said Suzuka  
  
A few seconds of silence was heard "To late" said Jim somberly, several gunshots were then heard and the line was cut.  
  
"Jim, Jim, JIM!" screamed Gene in terror. Gene then forgot about the bridge and began to sprit to Cargo bay 3. But before he got to far he heard a voice.  
  
"Gene, we will take care of it." Said Suzuka  
  
"WHAT!" said Gene?  
  
"Gene you need to get to the bridge and stop the nuke!" yelled Suzuka  
  
"But Jim!" yelled back Gene as he froze in place  
  
"If he is alive we will get him out. If he is not alive I will personally make sure that Reynolds joins him in death!" said Suzuka a rage that none of the others had ever heard from her.  
  
"Alright, I'm going" Gene said with confidence, he than turned to the bridge and began his way there.  
  
Suzuka had not been this angry in a long time. After her family was burned before her eyes she had little room for people in heart. However she had even surprised herself by making a makeshift family out of this crew. As strange as it was, the outlaw, the genius boy, the bioandroid, and the Ctarl Ctarl were her family now. If she lost her family again she might just lose her mind along with it.  
  
Aisha was just as angry. She considered the crew her family as well but for some reason she always had a special place in her heart for Jim. She never could figure out why but she really liked the kid.  
  
The pair finally reached the entrance to Cargo Bay 3 and with a kick from the mighty Ctarl Ctarl the door flung open. What the two saw was horrid. Reynolds was kicking Jim in the gut as he lay on the ground like a rag doll.  
  
"YOU SON OF A BITCH!" screamed Aisha in pure rage. She seemed less woman and more animal now as she dived at Reynolds.  
  
Reynolds saw her coming and quickly dived out of the way. Aisha smashed into the wall with a loud thud but seemed unfazed.  
  
Before Suzuka got in on the attack she noticed something Jim was still breathing. He was alive. She also noticed very little blood around his body. He had not been shot yet.  
  
Reynolds had his hands full dodging the attacks of a very mad Ctarl Ctarl. He then jumped at Jim's body and held it up next to him. He then pulled a weapon and held it to his temple. Aisha reached them just as he got the gun to his head.  
  
"I may have missed before but if you so much as touch me I will not miss now!" said Reynolds in anger.  
  
Suzuka froze and cursed herself mental for her mistake. She knew that she should of taken Jim out as soon as she noticed he was alive.  
  
"The sword through it over here." Said Reynolds  
  
Suzuka did as she was order and through the sword at his feet.  
  
"A boken?" he said in disbelief "You, the Ctarl Ctarl get over there with your friend" he said as he motioned her to move. She did and Reynolds began backing up to the exit. When he was at the door he stepped through and then he tossed Jim to floor like a sack of potatoes. He then raised his gun pointed it at the child.  
  
"Good riddance" he said  
  
But before he could get the shot off both women dash with blinding speed. Aisha jumped on top of Jim to cover him from the shot. She could handle a bullet wound much easier then he could. Suzuka dashed to Reynolds who noticed her at the last instant right before her fist smashed into his face knocking him out of the room.  
  
"Aisha!" Suzuka yelled asking a question that need not be said.  
  
"I think he is alright," said Aisha  
  
Suzuka then turned to look for Reynolds but he was gone. She then dashed out the door in hot pursuit.  
  
"Aisha" murmured a beaten Jim  
  
"Jimmy, its alright everything is alright" said Aisha she grabbed the young boy and hugged him for all she was worth  
  
Jim was never happier.  
  
Meanwhile Gene had finally reached the bridge. He found Mel in the tank looking like a zombie.  
  
"Mel are you alright?" said Gene  
  
Melfina opened her eyes smiled and said "Never better"  
  
Reynolds on the other hand was in very bad shape. His nose was broken, he was partially blinded with a busted eye socket, he was in a ton of pain, and he had an assassin hunting him down to finish what she had begun. He was currently sprinting to the bridge.  
  
(If the Ctarl Ctarl and the Assassins are here then there is good chance that Starwind is as well. That kid must have found a way block the sensors. But how, its alright I still have two trump cards left, Melfina and the nuke.) Reynolds thought to himself  
  
Reynolds arrived at the bridge with Suzuka not far behind. He found Gene Starwind in the pilot's chair waiting for him.  
  
"You!" yelled Reynolds  
  
"You look like shit man" said Gene  
  
"Melfina kill him!" screamed Reynolds  
  
"Why would I do that?" said Melfina as she came out of the tank.  
  
"What?" said a confused Reynolds  
  
"Listen pal, Mel is back, the ship is back in Gilliam's control and you lose. We have you beat. Now I am sure there is a mighty large bounty on your head down on the planet so be a good little shit and wait till we get to the planet alright." Said Gene with a smirk  
  
Melfina then said "One more thing" she then walked up to him and put both hands on his shoulders. She then drove her right knee directly into his crotch.  
  
"Ouch!" said Gene  
  
Reynolds dropped to his knees with a high-pitched whine  
  
"If you ever do that to me again I will do a whole lot worse," said Mel with tears in her eyes.  
  
Gene smiled got up and gave his lover a kiss and a hug. Then just as he was about to have Gilliam hail the planet, Reynolds spoke.  
  
"The game is not over yet." Said Reynolds weekly "If I don't win, nobody does!"  
  
Reynolds then raised a small black box with a red button from his jacket pocket. He hit the button.  
  
The ship began to shake and then Melfina screamed "THE NUKE!" 


	8. The Big Bang

The ship quaked as the nuke's engine sprang to life, it did not launch right away instead it warmed its engines. The weapon of death was preparing to launch and it was impossible to stop.  
  
"What did you do!" yelled Gene  
  
"I just made sure that this ship will go down in history as being the ship that killed a planet!" laughed Reynolds "and there is nothing you can do to stop it!"  
  
Melfina quickly ran to her capsule and quickly entered once inside she connected with the Outlaw Star grid and the found the file she noticed earlier. It was filed as the navigation system for the nuke.  
  
"Gene get in the pilot's seat now!" yelled Mel from her tank.  
  
Gene complied even though he had no idea what Mel was up to.  
  
"I am going erase the navigation command for the missile," said Mel  
  
"What will that do?" said Suzuka as she sat in the chair to Gene's left.  
  
"I'm not really sure but it won't hit the planet," said Mel  
  
Reynolds moved to a sitting position and laid against the wall he was to soar from Mel's "attack" to make any drastic movements but he could hear what was occurring.  
  
"You do that and we are probably all toast!" warned Reynolds  
  
"What do you mean?" said Gene  
  
"If that thing does not have a destination it will destroy the first thing it hits. That thing will probably be us. With out a navigation command it will just fly around space and till it hits something," said Reynolds  
  
"Which will probably be us?" said Suzuka  
  
"I may not win Starwind but you are sure as hell going to lose" he said  
  
At that moment Aisha and a battered Jim walked into the cockpit and found Reynolds against the wall.  
  
"What the hell is going on?" groaned Jim  
  
"I explain in a second but first, Aisha" said Gene  
  
"What about me?" meowed Aisha  
  
"Shut up the dipswitch" said Gene  
  
"WHAT!" yelled Reynolds  
  
"Not permanently though" said Gene  
  
"Awe you don't let me have any fun!" said Aisha, she then reared back her left leg and before he could protest kicked Reynolds dead in the face. Reynolds head smacked up against the metal wall behind him with loud thud and he fell to the floor out cold.  
  
"Alright Mel, erase the program. Aisha sit down. Suzuka watch the nuke, Jim get ready we are going to have to dodge a Nuke in a few seconds a nuke is going to pop out of the cargo hold and start going nuts. We have to dodge it and get rid of it somehow."  
  
"Oh………..great" said Jim with a groan  
  
Seconds later the nuke launched out of the ship and the Outlaw Star was once again at rest. But not for long, the nuke made a u turn and quickly pointed at the side of the ship. Gene quickly turned on the Grappler combat mode and moved the ship in the nick of time. The missile then flew off doing loops, corkscrews, and turns and a seemingly random pace. It was as if the nuke itself had gone mad.  
  
"Well I open to ideas. Anyone know what to do with this thing."  
  
"We have a bigger problem I afraid" said Gilliam in a panic  
  
"What now" said Gene  
  
"That thing has locked on to us!" screamed Gilliam  
  
"Oh Shit!" the entire crew said in unison as the missile flew at them. Gene dodged the missile over and over again using the maneuverability of the ship to his advantage. He was able to keep away from the missile but every time it would dive at the ship it got closer and closer.  
  
"I can't keep this up forever!" yelled Gene  
  
"well what do you want me to do!" said Jim  
  
"Find someplace to dump this thing!" said Gene  
  
"It's a nuke…its not like the we can just dump it somewhere" said Suzuka  
  
"Well if we don't do something we will be vaporized and it won't matter much anyway." Said Jim  
  
Meanwhile back on the planet the Zeus IV defense force were confused at the video the satellites were sending them. They had seen four individuals board the hijacked ship just after the shields malfunctioned. The shields were quickly raised and then a few minutes later the nuke launched but now instead of the nuke coming down to the planet it was attempting to hit the Outlaw Star.  
  
"I don't now about you but I'm lost sir," said one of the pilots to the commanding officer  
  
"I'm not sure what's going on but I'm willing to be that mad man is no longer in control" said the commanding officer  
  
"So what do you suggest we do?" said the one of the pilots  
  
"Sit here and hope that thing hits them instead of us" said the commanding officer  
  
In space his wish was almost granted as the missile missed the Outlaw Star by mere inches  
  
"Whoa!" yelled Jim  
  
"To close!" yelled back Aisha  
  
"I know I know!" yelled back Gene in disgust  
  
The missile banked again and turned to the Outlaw Star.  
  
"Gene what do we do?" asked Jim  
  
"How the hell should I know" yelled Gene looking down at Jim "I am trying to dodge a missile here and…"  
  
"LOOK OUT!" screamed Mel  
  
Gene looked up and saw the missile right in his face. Gene did the only thing he could and in pure instinct he raised the Grappler Arms and caught the missile stopping in place.  
  
Gene and the rest of the crew had blank stairs on their faces. All of them white as ghost from realizing just how close they came to becoming space dust.  
  
Gene sighed deeply and said "Peace of cake"  
  
"WHAT DO YOU MEAN PEACE OF CAKE WE COULD HAVE BEEN KILLED!" screamed Jim  
  
Just then a rattle could be heard as the Grappler Arms of the Outlaw Star were beginning to give out. The force of the engine on the nuke was putting to much strain on them and soon they would break.  
  
"Oh shit we have to get rid of this thing right now!" said Mel  
  
The entire crew looked back at her as if to say "well duh!"  
  
"Alright, we got to put this someplace" said Gene  
  
"But where its not like we can just dump in the trash" said Suzuka  
  
"We need something for it to blow up, something that we could throw it at and still be far enough away" said Aisha  
  
"I got it Fred's ship you borrowed!" said Jim  
  
"What we can't do that Fred will make us pay for the damn thing!" said Gene  
  
"If you got any other ideas I am listening" said Mel  
  
"Oh fine, get ready as soon as I throw this thing we gotta run like hell to get clear of the blast" said Gene  
  
The outlaw star then moved the missile as if it were a javelin and the ship an Olympic Athlete; they then flew to where they left Fred's ship.  
  
Meanwhile back on the planet below the military was watching the situation unfold  
  
"Now what is he doing?" said the pilot  
  
"Looks like he is going to hurl that thing at the little cargo ship they came aboard. Who is that ship register to?" said the commanding officer  
  
"The files say to the Penelope Corporation ya know the one owned by the Lou family," said the pilot, as he looked it up on the computer screen.  
  
"What is it caring" said the commanding officer  
  
The pilot gulped and said "rocket fuel"  
  
"Ohhhhhh greeeaaat" sighed the commanding officer  
  
Back aboard the Outlaw Star Gene used all the power in the Grappler Arms to hurl the missile at the ship. As soon as it left the grasp the ship did a quick u-turn and flew at break-neck speed out.  
  
The missile hit the target sending a blast that could be seen through out the solar system. The blue-purple light that was emitted was incredible. It would have been beautiful if it were not for the wall of fire that accompanied it.  
  
The fire quickly engulfed the Outlaw Star burning it badly; it also vaporized a couple of the military satellites rendering the military blind.  
  
Minute's later dozens of emergency vehicles were in the area one of them grasping the now severely damaged Outlaw Star.  
  
When the emergency personal got aboard they found the crew waiting. Battered and bruised, but other wise fine. They also found that they were in the possession of a terrorist named Reynolds with a five million Wong bounty on his head.  
  
They then went back to planet and lived happily ever after.  
  
That is until the next day when the received a call from Fred  
  
"Hey Fred, now before you say anything I know that we owe you some money and we will be happy to pay you back and pay for your ship. We figured 3 million Wong should cover it," said Gene with smile  
  
"YOU WISH!" said Fred in an angry tone  
  
"What" said Gene  
  
"Gene that ship had rocket fuel on it, that stuff is antique an very valuable. I had a buyer for the stuff and he offer 3 million just for the fuel." Said Fred  
  
"What they why did you give us the damn ship!" yelled Gene  
  
"You said you would take anything" said Fred  
  
Gene grinded his teeth and said "How much"  
  
"I would say that four million would be adequate" said Fred "Goodbye"  
  
"WHAT!" said Gene  
  
At that moment Jim walked in and said, "The Outlaw Star is back in tip top form and the repairs only cost us 1 million Wong. What a deal."  
  
"Yeah and Fred is going to get the rest!" said Gene  
  
Gene then explained the situation to the crew. The rest of the day was pretty depressing.  
  
The next day things were returning to normal. The only plus from their adventures of the past couple days was that they were considered heroes by many which increased their jobs a little. But right now it was almost time for dinner. Aisha and Jim were playing video games, Suzuka was quietly watching television, and Mel was making dinner when Gene walked in.  
  
Mel greeted him with a kiss and said "have fun"  
  
"Oh yeah fixing space ships all day is my kind of fun alright" said Gene  
  
"Its good money" said Mel  
  
"yeah but why can't Jim help me" said Gene  
  
"Because he is still injured" said Mel  
  
"Oh yeah he looks to be in great pain" said Gene as he watched him having fun with the video game and Aisha" said Gene  
  
Mel gave him an elbow and said "relax, what is important is that our family is alright"  
  
"Our family?" said Gene  
  
"Yep" said Mel "The only one I have ever had"  
  
Gene smiled and kissed his lover and then looked at the others. As much as he tried to deny it she was right. For better or worse they were not just a crew but also a family now. He had already lost one family. He would die to protect this one.  
  
  
  
THE END  
  
  
  
Well that's it folks. I want to thank everyone who read this thank everyone for their comments as the fic wore on. Its been fun writing this fic over the past month or so and I hope to do another one soon. Thank you all very much, and be sure to keep an eye out for more of my fics.  
  
  
  
JAB MAN 


End file.
